一、听力练习
1.
A. European space agency.
B. China National Space Administration.
C. United Arab Emirates space agency.
D. U.S. space agency.
2.
A. Launching.
B. Landing,
C. Returning.
D. Orbit transfer.
二、听力文本
China showed off its Mars spacecraft during a landing test last week in the northern province of Hebei. China is planning to send a lander and rover to Mars next year to explore parts of the red planet. The United States and European space agency are also sending rovers to the planet in 2020, and the United Arab Emirates plans to launch an orbiter. Officials say the Mars lander successfully passed a hovering-and-obstacle avoidance test. The landing area had small piles of rocks on the ground, similar to what the uneven surface on Mars is like. The lander will have to move around on this kind of surface when it gets to the planet. In 2016, China officially began the Mars exploration mission work, and currently all of the different development work is progressing smoothly. China has developed a powerful rocket, the Long March 5, to send the spacecraft to Mars in 2020. The trip to the plant will last about seven months. But landing on it will take only about seven minutes. The landing will be the most difficult part of the space flight. Many spacecrafts sent to Mars have been lost or destroyed over the years. Only the U.S. space agency NASA has been successful, with eight landings. China's space program plans to use a Long March 5 rocket to send a spacecraft to the Moon by the end of this year, or early next year. The Chang'e-5 spacecraft will bring back pieces of rock from the moon's surface. Last January a Chang'e-4 probe successfully touched down on the far side of the moon. While NASA sent humans to the moon, this was the first time for a probe to touch down on the lesser-known far side. The landing was a major success for China's space program. China first landed a spacecraft on the moon in 2013.
Question 1: According to the news report, which of the following has successfully sent spacecrafts to Mars?
Question 2: According to the news report, which of the following will be the most difficult part of the space flight?
三、重点词汇
1. hovering-and-obstacle avoidance test: 悬停和避障测试
2. uneven: not level, equal, flat, or continuous 不平整的；参差不齐的；不平等的；不平坦的；不连续的
四、背景知识
中新网北京11月14日电：中国国家航天局14日邀请部分外国驻华使馆及国际组织人员，赴位于河北怀来、目前亚洲最大的地外天体着陆综合试验场，观摩中国首次火星探测任务着陆器悬停避障试验，并参观相关试验设施。

中国首次火星探测任务着陆器悬停避障试验公开亮相。

孙自法 摄 本次试验模拟了着陆器在火星环境下悬停、避障、缓速下降的过程，对其设计正确性进行了综合验证，并模拟了火星重力环境(火星重力加速度约为地球的1/3)。

这是中国火星探测任务首次公开亮相，也是中国务实开展航天国际交流与合作的重要举措。

火星探测是当前国际前沿的科技创新活动，安全着陆是火星探测任务最艰巨的挑战之一。

中国首次火星探测任务计划于2020年择机实施，目标是通过一次发射任务，实现火星环绕和着陆巡视，开展火星全球性和综合性探测，并对火星表面重点地区精细巡视勘查。

五、参考答案
Question 1: D
Question 2: B。